Honestly, what do you think of our Troops when they do things like this?

Question

I am not trying to undermine our military, but things like this disgust me. How can they not disgust you too? How did they know that the person they were shooting at was guilty of anything? How did they know if there were children in the car? And how can we continually say that all this "collateral damage" is really accidental? Is this how we win the hearts and minds of Iraqis? How can we sit in judgement of Sadaam when we behave this way? I hate war. I really do. Do you?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_ZCGhd8jnU&feature=PlayList&p=96536A36AC9575EF&index=0

I can judge all I want, my bf spent 13 months there and I know all the stories, he tells me plenty. No matter how you paint it, men who behave like that disgrace our troops and the effort.

Didn't stop? How was the guys supposed to know that he was driving in to a hail of bullets. I didn't see anyone even attempting to stop him. All you people just see what you want to see, I'm so sick of tunnel vision.

Answer 1

What do I think? I think our future generations will have to pay for this war and the crimes of it as we sink into the weak and divided nation we are about to become.
Killing civilians is not collateral damage it's is a travesty and it is barbaric. I thought our military was the best in the world, I thought military force took strategy not just shoot anything that moves we are not in a jungle we in a freaking desert.
The "soldiers" on the tape were proud and bragging of killing "people" they called them, not the enemy, not terrorists but "people" because that is exactly what they are doing.
thanks for sharing and I hate war too it is unbridled rage and reflects our inability to reason; the very thing that separates us from animals.

I am sorry about some of the replies that you are getting for this question, people want to believe so bad that this war is just. I believe that war sometimes is necessary, but not this one, not when there is no clear and defined enemy only some concept of terrorism and where is Osama bin Laden? The people defending this war just need to lie to themselves so they can sleep at night.

Oh and btw to the poster that said that sometimes we have to enter wars like in the case of Vietnam and WWII only in WWII did we have a clear and defined enemy...Vietnam was none of our business, and she should read a book or two.

Answer 2

The thing is that you don't know what happened prior to that attack. For all you know, someone from that vehicle could have shot a rocket at those troops. Imagine how you would feel if someone tried to kill you...wouldn't you want to retaliate?

As for the guy that drove up to it, sometimes bad things happen. For one, if you heard gunfire would you continue driving towards where the sound is getting louder?

I spend 2 years in Iraq and I was involved in several ambushes. I watched the vehicle in front of me get hit by a car bomb as we were driving down the road. Once I realized everyone in my vehicle was alright, it was all I could do not to get out of the vehicle and start shooting everyone around me.

Unless you've been in the situation...you will never understand. Our troops need support!

Answer 3

It's not a case of what do you think of our troops. War is a psychotic experience, with very few things for a soldier's brain to hold onto that relate to the rest of the world's 'reality'.
The things that have been a mainstay of soldiers throughout history are cameraderie and a belief that what you do is in the right. Us versus them is the only way a soldier can think and survive.
When leadership says "WE" are tough with prisoners as a necessary part of our survival, soldiers get tough. We've trained a generation of cops at the likes of Abu Ghraib.
When leadership says "THEY" are merciless scum that only want to kill us and deserve no quarter, and the people that are in fact trying to kill you on a daily basis look like civilians, the fact that you might harm a few of "THEM" that just aren't actively shooting at you at the time is very unimportant, and anything that reminds you of an active killer is grounds for doing it first. We're going to see the results of post-traumatic stress in our street crime and mental illness statistics for a generation, we'll see the evidence of our leadership's attitude in our blaming it on the victims.

We, as a nation, went along with leadership that made a very bad choice and continues to make bad choices. Troops have no blame in the matter, they're doing what their orders and the effects of war make them do.
We who continue to let our leadership's bad choices screw up Iraq and, more importantly, the youth and future of America are the ones to think badly of.

Answer 4

OK, but it says nothing about the circumstances under which
that took place. So much can be done with tape when it's only taken from a particular perspective which may seem to portray
something when what actually happened is something entirely different, and it's presented to reinforce an agenda not present fact. Al Jazera and the Islamic extremists use this technique a lot. So don't be to quick to believe everything you see.

Answer 5

They were obviosuly taking sniper fire before the video started (as per the end audio) They were returning fire on the position.
You ask questions from a civilian-not-being-shot-at, not-in-a-war-zone persepctive. You have to ask them from a soldiers perspective. First is why would this car being driving into a firefight. How do you not know that that is a car bomb?
The children in the vehicle is irrelevant as was demostrated when two insurgents blew up a car that contained children. The children in the back made the securuty personnel more lax as they checked the vehicle. The insurgent often choose the the point of attack, we are largely a reactionary force due to the nature of insurgency. Why are you shifting the blame for all the collateral damage on the Us forces that try and secure the area? Why not the enemy forces that chose to attack in the city streets?

I've met with the Iraqis personally. We delivered fuel and water, provided security for vilalges, built schools and hostpitals. That is how we win the hearts and minds, not to mention offereing the first tastes of freedom.
Hey, I hate war too. But I know that it is a reality, a necesary evil. I choose to serve to try and preserve our nation and I fight to end the conflict ASAP - but the end comes through victory - not withdrawal.
They were somewhat over zealous it seemed, but you have no clue the adrenaline that hits when someone is trying to kill you.
Its easy to sit back in total safety and over analyze, please don't make that mistake.

Answer 6

Honesty, I think you should look from the point of view of a soldier. These are both older and younger men who's minds are tainted by war. Sure, if you have epinephrine rushing through you you're going to go along with it, but if you think they actually wanted to kill civilians, it's you who has the problem.

Stop assuming everything is going to be the way you want it to be, the truth is these are real people in real places facing real danger, for you.

Some of the points you made can be used against you. These people that we're fighting, one day they'll be happily sitting at a desk in an office doing paperwork, and the next, they strap a bomb on their back, and run at some of our soldiers, now you tell me, how do they know they aren't terrorists. And did you not read one of the end credits: "No unarmed people were hurt in the making of this film" The people we're battling use their home court to their advantage, you can't act like we're fighting an honest group of people. They've already used their kids against us. I honestly don't care what your opinion of war is, nor do I wish to share mine any more then I already have, but I hope you know this by now, we NEED war.

Answer 7

I am not trying to undermine female but them creating on men and some even killing them for insurance money ( this lady in florida killed her two previous husbands) and then having affairs with minors ,,,,

they KNEW the boys were just kidsm and then the lady in texas who drowned her five kids .....

are they really "having problems" is this how they win the hearts of men and kids?

how can I date a lady when so many of them are so bad? I hate people who judge hundeds of thousands based on the actions of a few don't you?

dougc

Answer 8

No sane person likes war. But, what's the background on this video? There's a bunch of soldiers firing at some people and cars. Who says those were "civilians"? I'm not questioning that bad stuff, evil stuff, happens. It's just there's nothing here to back up what you're saying.

Answer 9

Well, you can't really make a judgement like that unless you are in that situation. Our troops should have never been put into Iraq in the first place.This is another Vietnam, no matter how you look at it.Troops put into combat without a plan for victory. You really don't know who your enemy is from one day to the next. I really feel sorry for the troops that are there and the hell they are in.
Be careful what you ask for, Bush said , "BRING IT ON", and that is just what has happened.For a sitting president to say something like that while we are in a war, was just the worst thing that he could have said for our troops safety.What a MORON.

Answer 10

At the end of the video it says "No unarmed civilians were killed during the shooting" and they were taking sniper fire from what the troop said near the end. Yeah, sure, its not pretty, but its war, what else do you expect? Also YOU weren't there, yeah, maybe your boyfriend was, but you weren't, do you know what kind of pressures troops face? They also have adapted to firing back at anything that fires at them.

Answer 11

If you listen to the end of the video, they were recieving fire from the white vehichle.

The other people were unfortunately caught in between the cross-fire(sucks to be them)


I served in the Infantry in Iraq for 13 months, I will tell you that I dont care how many of those people we have to shoot to bring our boys home alive.

Mam, you are a coward